US stocks fall to start June as traders watch debt ceiling bill move through Congress

• US stocks fell on Thursday as investors eyed the debit limit deal's progress.
• The House passed bipartisan debt limit legislation on Wednesday night.

US stocks fell on Thursday to kick off June as investors watched the debit limit deal move through Congress.

The House passed bipartisan legislation on Wednesday evening, easing concerns of a potential US default. It's now moving to the Senate. President Joe Biden called the outcome "good news for the American people and the American economy."

Traders are also looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's next policy meeting on June 13-14, when central bankers will deliberate over their next move on rates. The Fed has raised borrowing costs 10 straight times since March of 2022 in a bid to curb high inflation.

Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said on Wednesday that he feels inclined to "skip" another interest rate hike.

Here's where US indexes stood shortly after the 9:30 a.m. ET open on Thursday:

• S&P 500: 4,177.42, down 0.06%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 32,797.96, down 0.34% (110.31 points)
• Nasdaq Composite: 12,911.29, down 0.19%

Elsewhere, the crypto market's 2023 rally seems to be cooling as macro uncertainty mounts. Bitcoin notched its first monthly loss of 2023 as traders navigate central bank tightening and stubborn inflation.

"When there is fear sentiment in the market, investors tend to flock to safer assets, such as gold and government bonds," Brigham Santos, COO of blockchain financial services provider Lama, told Insider. "This can lead to a sell-off in riskier assets, including bitcoin. In addition, central bank tightening can also lead to a decline in bitcoin prices."

Santos added: "This could work as a domino effect by generating higher interest rates, which can make it harder to borrow money to invest back [into] bitcoin."

Here's what else is going on:

• A top Evercore strategist broke down three tech stocks that traders should be paying attention to. "Meta's the cheapest high-quality tech stock out there, period," he said of his top pick.
• Bank of America said that Nvidia stock could surge another 26%.
• Tesla chief Elon Musk said he's opposed to the US and China severing their economic ties.
• A former US Treasury official said China can continue to outgrow the US economy.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

• Oil prices dipped, with West Texas Intermediate down 0.35% to $67.83 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, slipped 0.5% to $72.20 a barrel
• Gold edged 0.2% higher to $1,982.30 per ounce.
• The 10-year Treasury yield ticked down five basis points to 3.63%.
• Bitcoin declined 2.8% to $27,027.98.